Fading Dawn
by rain angst
Summary: Raito is a violinist who has lost his passion. L is a mysterious pianist who has never shown his face to the public. L notices the lack of passion in the other musics after attending one of Raito's concerts. After the two meet L tries to re-kindle it.
1. Chapter 1

Title- Fading Dawn

Well it's a first attempt at writing a story that focus around music, hope you all enjoy it! Criticism is welcomed.

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At the age of five Raito had wondered into a music shop looking around bored. His mother had to stop at the pharmacy next store to pick up some cold medicine for Sayu. Sachiko allowed him free reign of Coffee Music(1) since it was next store. Raito had disliked the shiny brass instruments, but as he continued to walk down the aisle his attention was drawn to a violin. It was a sleek brown color with a long, slender neck. He picked it up slowly admiring the body of the instrument.

He had seen people play the violin a few times before and had the basic idea of how to hold it. Raito placed it on his shoulder and pulled the bow across the violin to get an idea of how it sounded in person. A low melody sound came from the violin and he was instantly hooked. Raito's eyes half closed as his hand began to move faster over the strings creating high and low vibrations throughout the small store.

A small group of people gathered around Raito and he didn't come out of trance until his mother placed a hand on his shoulder and awoke him from it. It was on that same day that Sachiko bought him his first violin.

Throughout the years Raito had find a solace in the violin that he could not replace with anything. The violin had become his life. As a child he had wanted to become a cop and follow in his father footsteps. But the violin allowed him an escape from the world and was much more effective than studying non-stop. His name had already became world renown and whenever he was able to do concerts the concert hall's would be sold out and a waiting list was made incase others who had tickets already could not make it for some reason.

Music had driven him to maintain being the best, but he had put all his competition to shame and even through maintaining the top was easy it didn't seems worth it when there were no worthy challengers. Only the mysterious pianist L was on his level. And yet the public had never seen him. The man created hits that rivaled Beethoven and yet L had never once had a live concert. Some say that L just didn't want to have stalkers, while others believed that L was just a hermit.

Raito believed that L was just possessive of his music. Not wanting to share the true sound in person. Listening to a CD and attending a live concert were two very different things. But ultimately Raito didn't really care. Like L his music inspired people.

Music came from the soul. The musician was showing a piece of his or her soul with the work they created. It was deep and personal, something that others could replicate but never feel the full effect. Only those truly great musicians could drag people down into their minds and allow others to experience the same passion they experienced while composing such a complex piece of work.

Raito liked to tease his audience. Pulling them into his world where he saw corruption and the decaying world. Hope was always on the horizon dancing with justice and the two were waiting to once again arise with the morning sun.

The audience were always abruptly pulled away unsure if the sun did rise or not.

Raito's most popular piece 'Fading Dawn' was believed, by most people, to be about a tragic romance that came to an abrupt ending of life. But his music was so much more than that.

It was that piece that Raito felt most close to. He knew that if he had ever found an object that would help him cleanse the world he would use it to get rid of all the people who were tainting it; making the world rot from the inside out. Through everyone he meet had no idea what that piece was truly about. The corruption of a rotting world and a young man who tried to play God while sacrificing his own humanity and his lover to achieve such a goal, but in the end he failed because no one can ever truly be a God when one has nothing but humanity to back them up.

There were people who often debated what the piece was about and everyone's response had been nowhere near it. His fans were beneath him and not one of them could truly appreciate his genius. Really all people thought about was love and even through that was a theme in his piece it was not the main focus.

His music had been his life, but now he couldn't think of anything to compose. His inspiration was no longer soaring in the sky like a free bird. Now it was trapped in a cage where the bars were holding him back, unrelenting on how much he truly wanted to leave.

It had been only a month since he had last come up with anything. He had three different violin pieces started but none seemed to be getting finished anytime soon. His manger was not pressing him at the moment but if nothing new came out soon then Raito was going to have to deal with some angry employers and he was not in the mood to deal with people who believed they knew classical music when they couldn't even grasp what his music was truly about.

Raito glanced outside to see the snow slowly falling as his hands wrapped around his Luke warm coffee mug that was almost empty. The winter months bought on more coffee than what Raito usually drank, but coffee sustained him and if he did not have it in the morning anyone around him would feel the wrath of it.

Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata was going off and Raito heard his song come on.

"Is that Raito's music?"

"Yeah it is!"

"I would so marry that guy"

"I heard this song is about two lovers who are separated by their families, but they still meet with one another because their love is too strong to be broken" a girl said sounding wistful.

"That is so sweet" two other girls said dreamily.

'They are beneath me' Raito thought annoyed that his supposed fans could not grasp what his music was truly about. Taking a small sip of his coffee and left his money on the table. He grabbed his violin case that was placed neatly besides him on the table and walked toward the door.

"Oh my god is that Raito!" a girl said in a loud whisper. Raito did not stop walking and exited the café without a backward glance. Being in the presence of idiots was tolerable for only so long. He moved to the parking garage a street away where his baby was, a silver '08 BMW M3 with 420 horsepower.

His car sprang to life and Raito drove out of there the garage at a neck breaking speed. If he was a police officer perhaps he would care about going over the speed limit and maybe he would have written himself a ticket.

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Raito stared up at the concert hall feeling detached from it as he walked into the back stage area. He had used to be able to feel like this place was a second home but now it was just another place. Everywhere he went was just another place to him.

The halls were bright and empty and a small wave of relief hit Raito as he walked to his dressing room. The employee's here were nice but they asked such stupid questions, like if Raito was performing or not. Why else would he be in the back stage area.

He opened his dressing room door and flickered on the lights before he hanged up his beige coat. Moving gracefully to a small table, that was only a few feet away, Raito placed his violin case down on the table and took a seat.

Raito could act like his music symbolized his life when he was at the concert halls. After all it might become his reality again one day.

He was glad he did not have to deal with other musicians. His music was solo and no other instruments were played during his performance.

There was a few times that Raito longed to use other instruments besides his own, but it was only a fleeting thought. His music didn't need other instruments to make it great. His one violin did all the work he ever needed for his concerts.

A small knock was heard at Raito's door before the brass knob twisted.

"I'm glad to see you back Raito-san" an elderly gentleman said from the doorway. "It is nice to be back Quillish-san" Raito said making a hand small gesture allowing the elder gentleman to enter his room.

"How has your travel's been? I heard you recently got back from Europe" Quillish asked as he sat across from Raito. "It went well" Raito said crossing his legs under the table. "I thought it would be. But I have heard a rumor going around saying that you have not written anything for over a month now" Quillish said, his thick eyebrows crinkling in concern.

Raito looked a little taken aback. "I did not know that such a rumor existed. Once again Quillish-san your next network is quite impeccable" Raito said letting a small smile grace his features. "My old ears are just good at hearing" Quillish responded and Raito's smile became a little bit bigger. "I'm sure they are, through I must admit I heard an interesting rumor myself" Raito said as he straightened out his black tie. "Oh and what is that?" Quillish asked releasing a small smile of his own.

'That you know the mysterious pianist L" Raito said looking a little disinterested.

"Raito-san does indeed hear interesting rumors" Quillish said not giving anything away in his expression.

"It would seem that I have not been mislead about such a thing" Raito said opening his violin case.

"Such a thing is best left unsaid" Quillish responded and Raito nodded his head in agreement. "I will not say anything about it. After all you haven't completely confirmed it" Raito said letting a small smile grace his mouth that was aimed at Quillish in a peace treaty.

"Are you looking forward to your performance?" Quillish asked changing the subject with ease. "As much as I can" Raito said vaguely. "It would appear you only have fifteen more minutes to yourself. I shall leave you to do as you will" Quillish said standing up slowly from the table his legs not working as well as they used to. "I hope you enjoy the show" Raito said as Quillish 

placed his hand on the doorknob. "It is always a pleasure to watch you play" Quillish said showing Raito one more wrinkled smile before he exited the room.

Raito's skills would allow him to play the piece flawlessly but to anyone with a musicians ear they would notice the lack of passion and as much as Raito respected Quillish he couldn't bring himself to care on whether or not Quillish approved of his performance because Raito was selfish and really he had never met anyone whose opinioned mattered to him.

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The five minute mark passed and Raito found himself interacting with yet another employee who kept ranting on and on how much they loved his music. He supposed that lesser people enjoyed the praise to raise their self esteem, but it was not needed in Raito's case, since his ego was already the top ranking in the world. No people with low self esteem would love the praise, but Raito just wanted the man to shut up so he could get in his music zone, which was going to be a tad more difficult than usual but ultimately it would be easy, after all he is a genius.

Raito entered the back of the stage area and saw the crew running around making sure everything was perfect. This happened every time he came here and if he had not seen the final results of the lighting and sound Raito would think that this place was severally lacking in efficiency.

Three boring moments passed before he was given the ok to go ahead and stand in the center of the stage. Raito placed the violin against his shoulder his other hand loosely gripping the bow.

The curtain began to rise and the whole theater was incased in darkness when a bright light shined down upon Raito. The audience silent and Raito's eyes half closed as his left hand rose placing the bow on the strings and with a sharp quick pull of the bow Raito created a quick paced song enticing the adults to really listen. After all he was a genius and even if he lacked passion for what he was doing he would always be brilliant at it.

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End of first chapter.

What did you think of it? Good bad a-ok? L will be in next chapter and the chapters will get longer this is kind of a trial, to see how it goes.

Ok so I apologize for not updating a few of my other stories quicker but I have had many story ideas and I am going to put a poll up so vote and tell me what you all want to read first. I am 

looking for a beta and if anyone wants to I would really appreciate it if someone would agree to do that for me. If anyone wants to send me a message.

About Coffee music it is the only instrument store that I know about, so it won with being used. I just realized that I hadn't said anything about the store, my apologies to all those who read the story before this was up and if you already knew then awesome!

Please review! You don't have to, but it will be nice to know what all you think.

-rain angst


	2. Meeting's

Title- Fading Dawn

I am so sorry that I have not updated this story in months. I have a habit of not planning my stories out which leaves these large gaps. When I get the time I am going to try and do an outline for all of my stories so you guys won't have to suffer through long withdrawal periods. Assuming you all like my work.

If there are any big gaps between sentences or paragraphs I apologize. My word document is not showing anything, so if there is any I have no idea how the gaps got there.

Hope you enjoy the next installment!

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Quillish made his way out of Raito's dressing room quietly, before turning down the long hallway; his black shoes making small clicking sounds against the hard floor. Once reaching the end of the hallway Whammy took the elevator up to the sixth floor, which was the highest level of the concert hall. The elevator doors slid open to reveal plush red carpets with paintings covering the walls.

Pulling out a small brass key, from his front pocket, Whammy un-locked the wooden door, before entering and shutting the door softly behind him. Making his way through the medium sized room, that held its own small fridge with a small sink in-between the sink and the counter. With a red couch pressed up against the right wall.

Whammy took the few remaining steps to the red carpet that hid the entrance to the concert hall.

Making his way out of the room, Quillish saw his employer sitting on a red velvet chair. There were two rows of chairs with four chairs in each row.

"Is this Yagami-kun as good as you say?" L asked scratching his left big toe with his right. "I enjoy listening to his violin as much as your piano" Watari answered as he took a seat next to a prodigy.

L's eyes shined with a childish glee at the thought, "I have never heard you compliment someone like that before," L said as he bought his thumb up to his mouth to nibble on it. "There is a rumor floating around that Raito-kun has lost his passion," Watari said with a small sigh of distress.

The childish glee dimmed in L's eyes at the mention of that. "If that is true, than Yagami-kun is not nearly as good a musician as you thought," L responded as he sat further in his chair, waiting for the lights to dim.

L didn't have to wait long, the lights dimmed and a single spotlight shined upon a young looking man whose eyes were half glazed over, though L wasn't completely sure.

Raito's hand twitched before a fast paced song elicited from the violin pulling the audience into the music almost immediately.

Ryuuzaki turned his head to see Whammy closing his eyes, trying to get the full impact of the music that was dancing around the theater, pulling the audience into a playful nature to make them relax.

For one straight hour Raito continued to play, not once moving from his spot. His body was completely relaxed, but the music felt strained to L, like an actor who knew their lines, but said them without knowing the hidden meaning beneath them.

Raito finished the last song while pulling the bow roughly away from him. Opening his eyes slowly, Raito lowered the violin away from himself slowly. A loud uproar of cheers echoed throughout the room as Raito slid a small smile onto his face.

An announcer came onto the speakers telling the audience they would be taking a twenty minute intermission. The house lights came on and people in the lower levels began to get up and walk around to stretch out their legs and use the bathroom.

"Do you like Raito-kun at the moment?" Whammy asked as his eyes fully opened. "Yagami-kun's music is dull. There is no passion at all," L responded blandly. A small sigh escaped through Quillish's old lips, "it would appear the rumors are true," Watari said looking at the spot Ratio had just been standing at sadly.

"Do you wish to meet Raito-kun?" Watari asked as he stood up from his chair. "No," L responded, not wanting to meet someone who played with no soul in their music. Mozart had created music that bared his soul, while Raito played music that sounded forced.

Watari left, but came back, a few moments later with a slice of strawberry cheesecake. "I think you would like him, once you got to know him" Watari said as he handed the plate over to L. "If there is one song that Yagami-kun play's with even the slightest hint of passion I will meet him then, but if not, there is no point" L answered as he picked the fork up with his index and thumb finger; a happy sigh leaving his lips as the first taste of strawberry assaulting his tongue.

A loud buzzing sound came over the speakers announcing Raito would start playing again in five minutes and asked everyone to take their seats. The sound of people began to grow louder as the crowd began to walk back into theater and took their seats again.

Finishing of his cake, L placed the empty plate on the un-occupied seat next to him. The lights dimmed, and once again Raito was bathed in a glimmering light. L watched Raito rest his violin on his shoulder, before placing the bow on the strings and letting a low sound vibrate throughout the concert hall. Each sound coming out slowly, like a person who was going through extreme pain, but L could tell Raito did not care what he was playing. All it was was beautiful sounds that were vibrating throughout the hall.

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Raito felt a sheen of sweat beginning to form on his forehead. He was on his last song for the night, a perfect time to end with his fading dawn song. Perhaps he would finally find someone who actually understood this song.

His fingers began to pull the bow over the violin in slow movements again, almost sounding like he was bored with the piece before a sudden jolt came from the violin alerting the audience to a climatic part already taking place in the piece. And Raito felt himself sink further into the music he once adored playing.

L's thumb slipped out of his mouth slightly at the sound emitting from Raito's violin, it was the closest thing he had heard to playing with passion from the younger man all night. Watari eyes met with L's knowingly, before the two turned their attention back to the younger man who had become closer to finally showing a love of his work, even if he still had a long way to go.

The piece finished, after seven minutes, with silence encompassing throughout the whole theater before the audience roar almost became deafening. L watched Raito smile at the audience and remain on stage for a few minutes, before he turned and walked away.

"I would like to meet Yagami-kun at some point" L decided as the house lights came on again and everyone began to exit the theater. "I can arrange that" Quillish said as he stood up and took L's empty plate to the room connected to the box seats.

Whammy made his way to the sink and grabbed a rag off of the small counter while starting to wash the fork and plate of. L came into the room, not wishing to sit in the noisy theater. "How did you enjoy the concert?" Whammy asked as he heard L enter the room. "The last song was the only one worth hearing" L said as he sat on the couch waiting for Whammy to finish. "Is it because the other songs had no hint of passion in them?" Whammy asked knowingly. "Yes" L said simply, resting his hands on his knees.

"Would you like to meet Raito-kun tomorrow?" Quillish asked as he put the plate on the small counter connected to the sink. "That would be fine" L responded as he stood up on the chair before stepping onto the floor.

"Are you ready to leave?" Watari asked as he turned to face L. L said nothing as he got up and began to walk toward the door, with Whammy following behind him, after Quillish had placed the plate and fork away in the cupboard above the sink.

The two had their own exit from the theater, so the traffic was not as bad for them as it was for everyone else.

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Raito pulled the violin away from him and almost felt the world around him become deafening with the roar of applause. Roses were thrown onto the stage, but Raito ignored them. His smile widened at the audience even more as he remaindered on the stage for a few more moments, before turning and leaving without a backward glance.

The stage workers were throwing compliments his way, all of them saying how great they believed the concert was, but there praise was useless because they did not understand Raito was losing his purpose and he needed to find it again.

It felt like he was imitating someone else's style, and that was the reason he couldn't play, but he knew that was not the reason.

Raito reached his dressing room to see it full of flowers from admirers without a face. A small sigh escaped through Raito's lips as he moved some of the flowers out of his way to reach his violin case.

Raito placed his violin in the case along with the bow, before shutting the case and exiting the room, he had no reason to stay in a room full of empty praise. Flipping of the lights, Raito left the room clutching onto his violin case, while hoping to meet a person who actually understood his music.

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The sun shone brightly through Raito's apartment window as he lay on his bed not wanting to get up yet. It was ten in the morning, but Raito hadn't found a solid reason to get up. Not finding one at the moment, he chose to stay in the comfort of his bed.

But the phone didn't agree, as it began to ring loudly throughout the bedroom. Raito's left hand reached out to his night stand to pick up his cell phone and looked at the caller ID. 'Whammy' it said, "Moshi moshi" Raito said as he flipped his phone open and put it next to his ear.

"My apologies for calling you so early in the morning Raito-kun" Whammy's kind voice said from the other side of the phone. "It is fine, do you need something?" Raito asked as he sat up in his bed. "A colleague of mine would like to meet you today, is that alright with you?" Quillish asked.

'Hopefully not a bumbling idiot,' Raito thought before he spoke again. "That is fine with me. What time should I meet with your colleague?" Raito asked curiously. "Is five o'clock at 100% Chocolate cafe, ok with you?" Whammy asked kindly. "That works for me," Raito said withholding a yawn. "Good, I shall tell my colleague that. I will speak with you later Raito-kun" Whammy responded. "Goodbye Quillish-san," Raito said as they both hanged up.

Raito placed the phone back on the night stand, after shutting it, and got out of bed un-willingly.

His feet padded on the cool tile floor softly as he walked into the kitchen to make a pot of coffee. The coffee pot began to brew and Raito's eyes moved over to the violin case laying innocently on the dining room table.

Turning his eyes back to the coffee pot, Raito could not bring himself to look at the object of his failed obsession. The sound of brewing coffee stopped and Raito reached his left hand out to grasp the handle tightly.

It was just another empty day.

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100% Chocolate Cafe, was a nice looking café, with dark wooden tables and a quiet atmosphere. The sun was sinking in the sky as Raito waited for Whammy's colleague to join him. He had no idea what the other man was going to look like, but the other man would know his appearance.

Raito watched as people came in to order something to go before leaving. Some of the people went to meet with others while most exited the café as fast as they came in. A shadow loomed over Raito breaking his concentration of watching other people. "Yagami-kun" a deep baritone voice said, making Raito tilt his head up to look at the other. "Yes," Raito asked as he looked up at the other man surprised.

Bottomless black eyes locked onto Ratio's own cinnamon eyes, making him want to turn his head away. This man standing before him held passion for something he loved lingering beneath his blank mirror eyes. Jealousy began to form in Raito's stomach, but he pushed it down. Now wasn't the time to feel something like that.

"Are you the acquaintance of Whammy-san" Raito asked trying not to show his jealously to this strange looking man. "I am" L agreed bringing a thumb up to his mouth to nibble on it. "I see I am Yagami Raito, nice to meet you" Raito said bowing his head slightly to be polite. "I know that," L said as he took a seat across from Raito. "I merely said it to be polite, what is your name?" Raito asked annoyed. "You may call me Ryuuzaki" L said with a small grin on his face.

"Is there a specific reason you wanted to meet me?" Raito asked when he realized Ryuuzaki wasn't going to say anything. "Yes," L said not elaborating on his answer. Raito's felt his eyebrow twitch in annoyance at the other man.

A waitress walked up to the table smiling at the both of them. "What can I get for you?" she asked pleasantly. "Black coffee" Raito said smiling politely back at her. "Regular coffee and bring a bowl of sugar cubes" L said not taking his eyes off of Raito.

The waitress made a noise of acknowledgement before walking off. "Why are you staring at me so intently?" Raito asked, feeling uncomfortable from L's un-blinking stare.

"Is it not polite to stare at people?" L asked as he tilted his head to the side. "Yes, it is rude to stare" Raito answered wondering how socially handicapped this man was.

"No matter, Yagami-kun your music is atrocious," L said bluntly.

"Why is that?" Raito asked intrigued. He had never met anyone who said his music was disappointing and in a way it was… refreshing. "You play with no emotion in your music; it was quite a dull experience. The only song that had real emotion in your music was the last song" L said as the waitress came by and put the beverages in front of their correct owner before she left without another word.

"I have some emotion in my music, or else I would not be playing at all," Raito said, taking a small sip of his coffee. It was a lie, but he wanted to see if this man understood that or not.

"Yagami-kun is a liar; if the music had not been created by you I would say that you were imitating another musician," L said as he began to stack sugar cubes. "What did you think of my last song?" Raito asked changing the subject, this man was getting to close to the inner workings of Raito's head. But this strange looking man could be the first one to know what fading dawn was about.

"Your last song, Fading Dawn, was quite intriguing, since it is about a young man trying to fix the corruption of a rotting world, while sacrificing his humanity, and lover, only to fail at the end because he is human. What a shame you played it so dully" L said as he picked up the small pile of sill standing sugar cubes and placed them in his coffee.

Raito almost choked on the coffee he was drinking. Someone understood, not only his lost passion, but actually understood the meaning behind Fading Dawn. This strange looking man in front of him understood even though it was the first time the two had ever met.

Raito knew he should be feeling relief, but he wasn't. This man, he had just met, could see through him and all Raito wanted to do was run.

"Ryuuzaki I have to go now, but would you like to get together again later?" Raito asked calmly, even as his body screamed at him to get out. "Do you have to be somewhere else, or you don't know how to respond to someone who knows the truth?" Ryuuzaki asked with a knowing look.

"My family is expecting me to visit them today and say how the concert went," Raito said honestly. "I see," L said as he pulled out a small card from his back pocket. "Call this number when you want to know what it feels like to play with passion," Ryuuzaki said as he held the card in-between his thumb and index finger.

Raito took the card while pulling out his wallet out and placing the card in there. "It was nice meeting you Ryuuzaki-san, I will call you later" Raito said leaving some money on the table as he stood up to leave. "Before you go," Ryuuzaki began making sure Raito turned to face him.

Turning back slowly Raito met with Ryuuzaki's eyes with a guarded expression on his face. "Remember to breath," L said simply as he stared intently into Raito's eyes. Raito felt his breath catch. He wasn't supposed to be read like an open book, but Ryuuzaki was reading him ease, and his he couldn't breathe when he was around this man.

"I don't see why I wouldn't," Raito responded, as he left the café without looking behind him.

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End of chapter 2

Moshi moshi- hello

100% Chocolate café is a real café. I looked it up on google earth, which is a kickass website.

Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and hope it was worth the wait. Did you all like the interaction between Raito and L at the end, or not? Also did you get 'remember to breath,' or did I not explain that one well enough? One more thing, I had to edit this myself so hopefully there aren't too many grammar mistakes.

Please review and tell me what you all think about this chapter.

-rain angst


	3. Captivating souls

Title- Fading Dawn

So it's been awhile since I have updated. I am really sorry about that, didn't mean for it to take this long. Wonder if anyone is still going to read this. Hope you all enjoy this chapter^^.

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L hears the small jingle of the café door, indicating that Raito has officially left. "Would you like anything else?" the waitress asks flatly as she taps her pen lightly against the notepad in her hand.

"A slice of chocolate cake," L responds waiting for the waitress to leave. Meeting Raito had been interesting, though he didn't think the younger man would be such a coward. He supposed it wasn't that surprising since it didn't appear anyone had ever understood Raito's song, except for him. But still, it was such a pusillanimous move to run away like that, he had thought Raito would have more of a backbone.

The younger musician held such a strong air about him, like nothing would stand in his way of what he wanted. 'I didn't misinterpret him, did I?' L thinks as he raises a slim thumb up to his mouth. 'It is disappointing; to meet such a feeble artist like Raito, but there is still a pull toward the other musician,' L notes. Raito still held an air of poise, one that L recognized within himself.

Picking up a sugar cube, L places it in his mouth; rolling the sugar around on his tongue, while it melts slowly. The waitress came back and drops of the slice of cake before leaving again.

Picking up the fork in-between his thumb and index finger, L digs blissfully into his cake. He places the cake on his tongue and releases a happy sigh as the rich flavor invades his mouth.

'What to do,' L muses as the fork dangles out of his mouth slightly before he tugs it away and digs it back into the moist cake. 'His music needs serious work. One who does not play with passion should not play at all,' L reflects. 'But Raito's passion is there, just suppressed,' L thinks as he taps the fork lightly against his plate in thought. 'I wonder how he plays when under the influence of music.' L speculates as he quickly finishes of his desert. Laying money on the table, for the payment of the cake and tip, L makes his way out of the café and walks into the busy streets of Tokyo.

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The conversation with his family had been boring. Sayu had been overly excited about the concert she hadn't been able to attend. His mother telling him how proud she was of her son and his father had not been there. He is still upset with Raito for choosing a career in the classical music industry instead of going into the police force. The last conversation the two had involved Soichiro telling him he was wasting his life before storming out of the house.

"Raito your father loves you, he just isn't sure how to react to your career choice," Sachiko murmurs as she stands by Raito near the front door. He slips his foot into his dress shoe before looking at his mom.

"I think he has made it clear," Raito replies as he finishes tying his shoe and stands up.

"Just give him some time, he will come around," Sachiko responds gently as she smiles reassuringly at her son.

"Your right," Raito agrees with a small smile, not wanting to upset his mother.

"Come back and visit whenever you can," Sachiko reminds. It isn't often that she gets to see her son, most of the time Raito is touring, or too busy to come.

"I will, see you," Raito smiles politely as he leaves the house, already having said good bye to Sayu, since she had left early to go on a date. He doubts he will visit home soon.

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Raito enters his empty apartment and feels humiliation wash over him. He doesn't know how to face Ryuuzaki. The man tore of his mask and it made him feel bare. All his life he done what was expected of him. Became a hard working student, is the perfect son, and a protective older brother to Sayu.

But the one thing he chose for himself was to become a violinist. He doesn't think that it is a selfish decision, but his father disapproves his choice, ever since he told Soichiro he wanted to go to college to learn to be a musician instead of being a detective. 'Is it such a selfish desire to do something I loved instead of doing something that would have put me in a boring routine,' Raito wonders as he pulls his shoes of.

He couldn't resist the call of placing bow against string. He had wanted to share it with the world and now it was a chore to stand on stage and pretend he was still in love with his music.

Raito already lost his inspiration for music, why did Ryuuzaki come into his life and sprinkle salt into an open wound that was already bothering him. But Raito was no better; he had found a convenient excuse to get away. Even though it had been refreshing at first, to no longer see the other man's face, Raito knew he had ran away from Ryuuzaki.

With a small sigh Raito flips the lights on and by passes the kitchen to go into his bedroom. He sits on his soft bed and turns on the nightstand lamp before pulling out the card Ryuuzaki gave him. His eyes linger on the card for a moment. It's a regular white card with a small black number on it, nothing else. 'This is what salvation is supposed to look like,' Raito wonders slightly amused as he sticks it back in his wallet. He will call Ryuuzaki tomorrow; the other man is probably asleep. Raito tells himself before he walks out of the room.

His violin is lying on the dining room table. Raito picks it up and walks further into the room. Against the wall is a music stand that holds all the recent music he has started but not finished. A table is pressed in the corner with a window above the desk and another window is ten feet away. Raito places his violin case on the table softly. Raito turns away and makes his way back into his bedroom.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Ryuuzaki opens the heavy hotel door and shuts it behind him quietly. He kicks of his shoes and walks across the padded carpet before veering off to the left and walks into the kitchen. Its medium sized with a fridge in the far corner and the sink is only a few feet away. A small island is in the center with a table pressed up against the far left wall in front of a window. L opens up the fridge and pulls out a chocolate pudding before shutting the fridge with his foot. Ryuuzaki tears of the lid and dips his index finger into the cold pudding, ignoring the utensil drawer. L swirls his finger around a few times before raising his finger to his awaiting oral cavity and places it in there.

"You really should use a spoon," Watari comments as he walks into the kitchen. L pulls out a chair and sits on it before responding.

"That would take away from the taste," L reasons as he licks some sugary goodness out of the cup.

"You only use utensils when you are pondering over something more difficult than usual. How did it go with Raito-kun?" Watari questions as he moves further into the room.

"A coward," L shrugs as he dips his finger back in.

Watari blinks in surprise before talking, "yet he still intrigues you."

L frowns lightly at that, he isn't sure how Watari understands his moods so well. "If you weren't interested in him you would be using a spoon," Watari responds and L nods his head in understanding.

"He does interest me. I gave him my number and told him to call if he wants to learn to play with passion," L replies as he scoops up a particular large amount of pudding.

"I think he will call you soon," Watari answers as he watches Ryuuzaki bring the pudding to his mouth slowly. Making sure none of it falls onto his white shirt.

"You have a lot of faith in him," L notes around his finger.

"He just needs someone to remind him why he chose the violin over the police force," Watari replies kindly.

"I'll turn my cell phone on tomorrow," L mutters as he tosses the empty container on the table. He licks his finger clean before exiting the room. Watari follows him out of the kitchen, after throwing the empty pudding in the trash.

In the main room is a large piano that sits in the center of the room. A few couches are facing toward the piano with a wooden table in front of it. L sits in front of the sleek piano and runs his long fingers over the ivory keys. A small smile of content settles across his lips as he plays a few scales.

"I'll leave you to play," Watari says quietly, but L doesn't hear him as he begins to play Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

A loud beeping sound awakes Raito from his slumber. He leans over and turns the alarm of before sitting up. The sheets fall around his waist as Raito rubs his eyes to get the last remnants of sleep out. He leaves the comfort of his bed and walks to the kitchen. The apartment is cold, but he has grown use to such things.

Raito opens up a bag of Starbucks Hazelnut coffee before he pours that into the coffee pot along with water. It starts to brew loudly and Raito walks to the front door and opens it. Leaning over, he retrieves the paper before making his way back to the kitchen. Smoothing the creases out of the paper, Raito begins speed reading through the main articles.

The sound of the coffee maker dies; Raito opens a cabinet up and reaches for a plain white mug. Pouring some coffee in, he sips at it slowly and finishes reading the front page of the paper. 'Nothing of interest,' Raito notes dully before folding the paper back up and makes his way back to his bedroom, while nursing a cup of coffee in-between his hands. He places the mug on the night stand before picking up his cell phone and turning it on.

'A new message from Sayu, probably about her date,' Light muses as he ignores the text for now.

'I'll wait to call Ryuuzaki after I shower,' Light decides as he shuts his flip phone. He picks his coffee back up and walks into the dining room. His eyes land on his violin case and Raito walks over to it slowly. Running his hands over the cold metal locks, Raito flicks them open. He opens the case up and admires the way the sun reflects of the cherry wood. Raito plucks a string with his finger. The chord rings loudly throughout the room creating a melody to anyone who listens, but to Raito's trained ear it's a hollow sound like looking into a craved pumpkin.

Finishing of the coffee, Raito puts the mug in the sink, before going back to his bedroom. He gathers his clothes for the day and walks into the bathroom to start his shower.

Stepping out of the shower, Raito dries himself of before putting his dirty night clothes in the hamper. His hand hesitates over his wallet before he grabs it and pulls the card out.

"I shouldn't put this of," Raito mutters as he grabs his cell phone. His fingers dial the number before he presses enter. The phone rings a few times before another voice answers.

"Hello."

"Ryuuzaki its Raito, I hope the hour isn't too early for you," Raito says politely.

"It's not, through I will admit I was not expecting you to call so soon," L remarks idly.

"Is that a problem?" Raito asks in a clipped tone.

"No, are you busy today?" L inquiries as he licks a glazed donut.

"I'm not," Raito responds.

"Come to Hilton Tokyo at three pm today. Don't bring your violin." L says flatly.

"What's the room number?" Raito asks.

"2021," L cuts the connection after that. Raito stares at the phone in slight shock. He had thought Ryuuzaki would give a proper goodbye, but apparently not. Raito shuts his phone and slides it into his back pocket.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

'How does a raggedly looking man afford a suite?' Raito wonders annoyed as his eyes stare at the mahogany wood door in front of him. Raising his hand he knocks on the door lightly. The door opens silently and Raito smiles a little as he looks at Quillish.

"I didn't know you stayed with Ryuuzaki," Raito comments idly as the door opens wider.

"I'm visiting," Quillish responds as Raito walks into the hotel room.

"You have a piano in here?" Raito murmurs surprised.

"Ryuuzaki makes special requests to have pianos in his rooms, whenever he gets the chance to travel," Quillish says.

"That must cost a lot of money," Raito remarks as he walks over to the grand piano and runs his hands across the keys.

"A bit, but he can afford it. Also if he plays any music for you today he has a habit of falling into his own world. You may have to shake him out of it," Quillish kindly says.

"How long does he go for?" Raito asks intrigued.

"It depends, anywhere from a few hours to two days straight," Quillish answers.

"That is impressive, does he do it often?" Raito queries as his eyes briefly flash to Whammy before looking at the piano again.

"Quite a bit, I like the altered state of mind I fall into," L replies from behind Raito. Raito turns his attention to L and gives the man a nod of acknowledgement.

"Do you play?" L inquires emphatically. His eyes glance over to Ryuuzaki, who is standing a few feet away.

"A little," Raito answers as he presses middle C down.

"Play," L says and Raito looks at L amused.

"I don't know how to play any songs without the sheet music, do you have any?" Raito inquires with curious eyes.

"I was playing Rachmaninoff earlier, would you like to attempt?" L mocks gently as he tilts his head to his side.

"Yes," Raito says sharply and L grins lightly. The younger man looks like a chicken with his feathers ruffled. L walks closer to the piano bench and opens it up before pulling out the worn sheet. The color is turning a musty yellow and Raito briefly wonders how long Ryuuzaki has had this paper.

"By all means play," L declares as Raito takes a seat. His eyes glance over the sheet music taking in each note. He places his hands over the ivory keys before letting his hands press down the first notes. L stands next to the piano and listens to the notes that slide out of the piano. It's rough and almost painful to listen to, but the notes are sharp and clear. The song picks up a little and L can hear it, the emptiness behind Raito's life. The music is slow, but the players' essence is leaking out like blood exiting a wound. L raises his thumb to his mouth and bites down on it.

'So much potential that is going to waste,' L observes and feels like Raito is going to fade away if he doesn't find his meaning soon. The song finishes and Raito takes in a deep breath, his hands still resting against the cool keys.

"Scoot over," L instructs and Raito moves to the edge of the bench, his eyes staring at L with interest.

L's hands rest against the smooth keys before his hands dance across the keys. The song is fast and Raito feels himself being drawn in. The air is becoming tighter like someone is holding onto his lungs and squeezing them in anticipation. The music grows louder, ringing throughout the room and Raito no longer notices Quillish standing in the background.

L's mirror eyes link with Raito's amber ones and he feels trapped in that unyielding gaze. It's like his soul is being torn away and a fire is igniting in his stomach. L's eyes are burning through him and Raito can't look away. His soul feels as though it is melting with Ryuuzaki's and becoming a part of the other man. The music begins to slow down and he can feel a peace wash over him like floating in the waves of an ocean.

Slowly, the music dies away and Raito realizes that he has scooted closer to L. He can feel the other mans breath ghosting across his face and Raito scoots back to the edge of the bench, waiting for Ryuuzaki to come out of his music induced trance. He's thankful that Ryuuzaki didn't seem to realize how close they really were.

"That is how you play with passion," Ryuuzaki murmurs as he comes out of his reverie. Raito feels a sense of loss creep into his chest. His music used to draw him into a world Ryuuzaki created, but now it's like listening to a singer who is out of pitch.

"What makes you play like that?" Raito inquires as he tilts his head to face Ryuuzaki. L draws his legs up to his chest and wraps his arms loosely around his legs.

"What was your inspiration?" L fires back and Raito feels a smile tug at his lips.

"I asked you first," Raito responds knowingly.

"But you're the one who needs to learn how to play with passion again, so we should find your old reason and see if it helps rekindle your love," L answers childishly.

"At the same time, wouldn't learning your reason help me be inspired by you?" Raito replies amused.

"I don't think you wish to be inspired by a man that had you ran away yesterday."

"It was not necessarily running away, rather it was leaving a situation I didn't see fit to finish," Raito responds evenly.

"So you don't see the point of talking about music?" L questions as he raises his thumb to his mouth.

"I never said that, I had a family matter to attend to," Raito stiffly counters.

"But aren't you and your father on bad terms because of your music?" L contradicts. Raitos eyes narrow at that as he turns his attention to Whammy who is attempting to make a clean getaway.

"It's none of your business," Raito replies flatly.

"It will be my business if your music has gone downhill because of your family," L firmly states.

"That's not the reason my music lacks passion."

"We will see," L murmurs and the room falls silent for a moment as the two have a small glaring contest.

"We aren't getting anywhere," Raito points out, while releasing a small sigh.

"You should answer the question than," Ryuuzaki replies immaturely as his toes curl and uncurl around the piano bench.

"You are stubborn," Raito mutters.

"As are you," L replies knowingly.

"We seem to have reached an impasse," Raito responds as he stands up.

"We have," L agrees, before talking again. "Want to get food?" L asks as he gets up as well. His eyes stare at Raito blankly, while he buries his hands into his jeans pockets.

"Sure," Raito agrees and L feels his lip curl up.

"I'll pay if you tell me why you wanted to become a violinist," L says as the two walk toward the kitchen.

"How are you paying if we eat here?" Raito asks amused.

"Because I already paid for the food and it would be rude for you not to answer your host's question," L says as he smirks at Raito over his shoulder.

Raito feels his eye twitch in annoyance, but smiles anyways. "Alright," Raito concedes.

The table is already set with a chicken creaser salad on one end and the other end has a large slice of blueberry pie. L sits in front of the pie and smiles happily as he takes a large bite, while Raito sits opposite of him and stabs a piece of chicken with his fork. Whammy places a glass of water in front of Raito and tea in front of Ryuuzaki. A small bowl of sugar cubes of to the side.

"Thank you Quillish-san," Raito says politely and Whammy smiles back.

"It's not a problem," Quillish responds as he exits the kitchen.

"Is he your caretaker?" Raito queries once Whammy is out of hearing range.

"In a way yes," L agrees as his fork buries itself in the pie. The two eat in silence and it isn't until Ryuuzaki has placed his fork, on his now empty plate, that he asks Raito a question.

"Why the violin?" L solicits as he nips at his thumb.

"It was the first instrument I picked up in Coffee Music," Raito answers as he takes a sip of water.

"That's it, what a sad you reason you have," L mutters, while grabbing three sugar cubes and plopping them into his mouth.

Raito looks slightly disgusted at L's eating habits, but makes no comment about it. "That's not it. It's the way the bow sounded against the violin. It's a peace of mind that studying nonstop could not fill," Raito responds truthfully as he stabs a piece of lettuce.

L stares at Raito blankly. A truthful answer, he had not been expecting that. "There are many escapes, you have merely found one that suits your talents," L responds offhandedly.

"As you have," Raito replies, with a small smile on his thin lips.

"The piano is my drug," L replies simply. "Now finish your salad, so I can show you something else that might help," Ryuuzaki says around his thumb.

"Why are you so keen on helping me?" Raito asks curiously.

"I want to be the blood that gives you life again," L replies causally.

Raito stares at L oddly, "that makes no sense," Raito murmurs as he finishes of his salad.

"Your music is near the brink of death, I want to hear you play with conviction, for reasons I will not disclose to you at the moment," L clarifies. Light pours in through the window and Raito is unable to see Ryuuzaki's expression, though he doubts it has changed.

"Then let's do our best," Raito cheerfully remarks as he places his dirty dishes in the sink and follows Ryuuzaki out of the room.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

End of chapter.

I had no one beta this chapter, so I apologize for any grammar mistakes. Not to mention it is almost five o'clock in the morning, where I live.

Please review and tell me if you like this chapter. It would be much appreciated, night.

-rain angst


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